Marlins series with the Mets in Puerto Rico canceled by MLB

JUPITER, FLORIDA - MARCH 09: Chad Wallach #17 of the Miami Marlins in action against the New York Mets during a Grapefruit League spring training game at Roger Dean Stadium on March 09, 2020 in Jupiter, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

The Marlins will not play their two-game series with the New York Mets in Puerto Rico this year. The league office announced this last week.

The Miami Marlins and New York Mets won’t be playing baseball in San Juan, Puerto Rico this season The move was made to help protect the players and fans from the pandemic that continues to spread throughout the globe.

The Marlins have fared well in international baseball in Puerto Rico but won’t have the chance to extend their success.

“Originally, the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks were going to play at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú in Mexico City, Mexico on April 18-19,” writes R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports. “Later in the month, the New York Mets and Miami Marlins were going to spend April 28-30 at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico.”

There is no word yet when the series will be played. The Marlins are expected to once again fall to the basement of the National League East, but it is games like these that could have helped the team change the complexity of the division. The series will now be played in Miami.

The decision to put a halt to the two series shouldn’t be a surprise given the league office is taken as many precautions as possible to guarantee the safety of the organizations, the players and fans. There is no set date when baseball will resume, but it ould be some time in the summer before it happens.

In May of 2016, MLB canceled a series between Miami and the Pittsburgh Pirates because of the threat of the Zika virus. The two games will instead be played in Marlins Park.

The Mets and the Marlins are a contrast of teams that could both ascend in the National League. New York has two of the best pitchers in the game in Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard and one of the best young hitters in NL Rookie of the Year, Pete Alonso.

There are more games to be played outside the U.S. this season, but there is no word on their status just yet.

“It’s unclear if MLB intends to cancel the planned London Series between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals scheduled for June 13-14,” Anderson writes. “Presumably, the league will hold out hope for a while longer that the season can begin in May.”